Sundays at NGMA.

The Bangalore chapter of the National Gallery of Modern Art, is situated on Palace road, not far from the Alliance Française, so when a student spoke about an exhibition of photographs by Homai Vyarawalla (see this Themeefy for more information), I decided to go there that very day. I was enchanted even before I saw the exhibition – the NGMA is housed in a lovely colonial mansion with a lovely garden and café.

The exhibition itself left a deep impression and I came back home to read up more about the life of Homai, the first Indian woman to become a press journalist. After seeing the exhibition, my friend and I had gone to the extremely charming café for a coffee. That first visit was followed by many afternoons at the NGMA café and it’s become one of my favoured places to visit when I want to work outside. It’s a pleasure to eat / work at the cafe, under the canopy of the trees, fanned by the gentle breeze swishing its way through the trees and fountains on the campus.

Apart from the exhibitions, NGMA also organises regular workshops and museum visits. I have often seen an elderly gentleman conducting art classes for children on the NGMA premises. But what I really like about NGMA are the film screenings they organise on weekends. What better way to spend a Sunday?

And so it is, that I find my way to NGMA and head straight to the cafe for some cheese omelette toast and lemonade, before stepping into the auditorium for an “art” film.

Desi Pardesi is the second series of films I’m attending at NGMA after Les Grands Maîtres last year, when I saw some excellent films on the frescoes in the Louvre, Degas and Courbet.